In Rematch, Wilde Lake Earns Win That Counts

The Wilde Lake girls' soccer team lost to Mount Hebron to finish the regular season Oct. 25 but three days later posted a 2-1 overtime victory over the Vikings in the first round of the 3A East Region tournament.

Wilde Lake Coach Dave Procida approached the team's first meeting with caution, instructing his team to stay in the same formation and not run plays off restarts or throw-ins.

"We knew the most important game was the second one, so we didn't want to show them anything tactically the first time we played them," Procida said. "We just played pretty much straight up."

In the second meeting, freshman Faryn Watts headed in a crossing pass from senior defender Annie Leslie early in the second half to put Wilde Lake up, 1-0.

Mount Hebron pulled even two minutes later on a goal by junior midfielder Kathryn Lally. Wilde Lake won in overtime when senior midfielder Nikki Welch delivered a perfect pass between two defenders, enabling Watts to score on a breakaway. Wilde Lake played River Hill on Tuesday in the quarterfinals.

Field Hockey

River Hill's field hockey team ended a decade of futility against county rival Centennial last week by defeating the Eagles for the first time ever, 2-1, in a 3A East quarterfinal.

"There's been years where we were better than them, there's been years when they were better than us, but always something happens," said River Hill Coach Shelly Chamness.

River Hill's Andrea Breon made it 1-0 eight minutes into the game, taking a pass from Joanne Reid at the mid-point of the circle. Centennial tied the game with five minutes left in the half when Molly Vorel scored off a penalty corner.

Six minutes into the second half, a host of players was slapping at the ball close to the Centennial goal. Chelsea Farley made an initial save, but River Hill's Rachel Ciarleglio knocked the ball in for the eventual game-winner.

River Hill lost, 4-0, to Severna Park on Tuesday in the region semifinal. . . .

Long Reach senior Kelly Filipowicz is the all-time leading scorer in the school field hockey program.

So it's not surprising that the Lightning's go-to player came up big in the playoffs.

Filipowicz scored three goals, bringing her season total to 26, as Long Reach ended a three-game losing streak with a 4-1 win over Annapolis in a 3A East quarterfinal last week.

Midfielder Melissa Chen set up all of the goals by Filipowicz, who took the ball down the right side of the field and scored. Carly Nethken also scored for Long Reach off an assist from Caroline Peddicord.

Long Reach lost to Mount Hebron, 3-1, Tuesday in the region semifinal. . . .

When Glenelg faced Hammond during the regular season and lost, Coach Ginger Kincaid said the team "didn't finish" on scoring plays around the cage. In a rematch last week, in the 2A South quarterfinals, the Gladiators did, winning 2-0.

Amy Thompson, who has 14 goals this season, finished off a Kristin Keravich shot in the game's opening four minutes for a 1-0 lead. Liz Lahayne scored from the top of the circle in the second half.

Glenelg has only two returning starters -- goalie Caitlin O'Neill and midfielder Lauren Kapps -- from the 2004 team but still went 9-5-1 during the regular season.

Glenelg beat Southern, 4-0, Tuesday in the region semifinal. . . .

Howard senior Laura Wachs scored with four minutes left in regulation to tie the score in a 2A South semifinal against Patuxent Monday night, but Patuxent scored first in sudden-death overtime for a 3-2 victory.

The Lions overcame two deficits in the game.

Trailing 1-0 late in the first half, senior Natalie Lucas scored on the goal post by knocking in Alex Linaburg's shot.

Patuxent took a 2-1 lead with six minutes left in the game, but two minutes later senior Ashley Oursler passed to Wachs for the game-tying goal.

With 3:38 left in regulation, officials gave a five-minute red card penalty to Oursler for pushing a Patuxent player while trying to get open on a free hit, leaving Howard one player down and keeping the Howard captain out of the ensuing 6-on-6 overtime.

"The girls never let up," said Howard Coach Rick Oursler. "And the girls we pulled off the bench gave us quality work."

Boys' Soccer

Mount Hebron Coach Mike Linsenmeyer looked at his team's draw for the 3A East Region tournament and laughed.

"Is it possible for us to have a harder road to the state tournament?" he asked. "If there is, I can't think of one."

Mount Hebron opened with a 5-0 victory over Centennial on Saturday and advanced to a Tuesday quarterfinal against Severna Park (9-4-1), which reached the state final last year. If the Vikings (9-3-1) won that game, they could play today at top-seeded Fallston (12-1), which won the 3A North Region tournament last year.

"And then the best part is if we win, we get River Hill or J.M. Bennett," Linsenmeyer joked. River Hill (9-1-1) is the three-time defending 3A champion and posted a 1-0 victory over Mount Hebron recently; J.M. Bennett is undefeated, and the Vikings would travel more than two hours on a bus to Salisbury for that game. Mount Hebron has never advanced to the 3A state tournament, winning the 2A title in 2000.

"When the bracket came out, I was happy because we would play our first two games at home, but then I saw the rest of the teams and I wasn't so happy," Mount Hebron junior midfielder Zach Barnett said. "But if we make it to the state tournament, then no one can say we didn't earn it."

Cheerleading

Atholton's cheerleading team won its second consecutive county title, and competitors said this one was more important because the county just elevated the sport from club to varsity status.

"This sets a precedent because we're the first varsity team to win," said senior Megan Woolley. "I think this brings credibility to our sport now."

Each squad performed a 21/2-minute routine, which was judged on difficulty and execution, with up to 300 total points available.

Atholton scored 227 points, River Hill was second (221) and Reservoir third (181). Those teams advanced to the state meet Nov. 10 at Old Mill, where they will face the top teams from Anne Arundel, St. Mary's, Charles, Baltimore and Harford counties.

"After we won, we took our big, two-foot trophy with us out for dinner and stuck it on the middle of the table," said Atholton Coach Beth Viscarra. "It was the prettiest centerpiece I've ever seen."